Samsung Galaxy Note hands-on [updated with video]

Is it a phone? Is it a tablet? As smartphones move to sizes of 4.5 inches and beyond, it's a question we've found ourselves asking more and more. The Samsung Galaxy Note is a new "flagship" product which straddles the line between both categories of device. Technically it's a phone, and you can make calls on it, but the large 5.3-inch 1280x800 display means it's not a million miles away from the Honeycomb-powered Galaxy Tab 7.7 in terms of specs. And the Galaxy Note has another trick up its sleeve, in the form of Samsung's new "S Pen", a pressure-sensitive stylus similar to what we've seen from HTC in the past. Samsung's keen to tout the Galaxy Note as a high-end product for business professionals and creatives alike, and we got to see its note-taking and drawing capabilities at today's Galaxy Note World Tour event.

Join us after the jump for a full video run-through of the new features of the Samsung Galaxy Note, along with our complete write-up.

Samsung bringing S-Pen SDK to developers in December

During Thursday's presentation at the Samsung Galaxy Note World Tour event in London, the S-Pen stylus was extensively shown off including a local artist creating the image seen here. Further enhancing their commitment to the device, and that it isn't a mere gimmick they also announced that an SDK for it will be available from December.

Samsung are obviously keen to push the technology, and to engage the third-party developers in taking advantage of the device. They also unveiled the first batch of third-party applications designed specifically for the Note -- Omnisketch, Comic Book and Sooner Workplace.

The first two are the creative, arty type of app that we're bound to see plenty of appearing for the Note. Sooner Workplace however is the first application to take advantage of the obvious enterprise use case for the Note, including collaboration on documents among it's features.

Back when Samsung unveiled their 5.3-inch, dual-core Galaxy Note with a SuperAMOLED HD display they never mentioned when, exactly anyone would be able to pick one up. Now though, Samsung has finally announced the commercial availability of the Galaxy Note, which will go on sale in European markets starting with Germany on October 29.

Launching with Android 2.3 and a 1.4 GHz dual core processor you'll also get a massive 2500 mAh battery to power that 1280x800 SuperAMOLED HD display, HSPA+ data as well as the 8MP rear camera and 2MP front-facing shooter.

Carrier IQ named 'company under $100M to watch' -- and users don't even get a thank-you

Market research firm IDC has named Carrier IQ -- a name that provokes a cringe or two -- one of the "companies to watch" for analytics groups under $100 million in revenue. Because it sells away data about your phone use -- telling your carrier what apps you use, how you use them, and when you use them -- we don't like it much around these parts. It's sneaky -- and sneaky is bad. How the whole deal works is that the carriers pay to have an app installed on the shiny new phone you bought, and it runs in the background. The data it sends helps carriers and manufacturers work together to focus improving and innovating the things that folks like you and I use most often. It saves them money, and makes you want to buy their next product by making Sense 4.0 do the things that users often do in a new (and hopefully better) way than Sense 3.0 did. Doesn't sound so bad, does it? Read on.

It's not inherently evil, at least on the surface. A carrier eats some of the cost of a phone when they sell it to you subsidized, and users get to enjoy the $200 they saved. But things get a little dicey when you consider who really owns the phone you just paid $299 for and signed two years of your contract life away for at the mall. They tell you up front that they are tracking usage and sending off data about you, but you're not given notice (or a chance to decline) until after the money has been spent. It's like buying a new TV and finding out that Channel 2 has been switched to the Best Buy News Network when you get home and hook it up. You can pack it back up and pay a restocking fee, or shake your head and accept it. Combine all this with the fact that you don't get a break on your monthly bill with most carriers if you opt-out of buying their phones, or that some carriers won't even let you use phones that they don't control, it things take a turn for the worse. And when bugs appear, things turn from worse to FUBAR.

Before anyone jumps in and says "justrootyourphone," that's not the solution. My mother can't, won't, and shouldn't have to root the phone to keep her information a little more private and keep others from profiteering from her. And that solution pretty much goes out the window when you consider she has a Nokia feature phone, which you can't just "root" -- yes, this problem goes beyond Android. What to do? Buy an iPhone or a Nexus. Or just accept what's happening and stop feeling indignant about it, because it's not going away any time soon.

Verizon's exclusive Galaxy Nexus exclusive no more?

Seriously, this is the last time we're going to write about this Verizon-Galaxy Nexus exclusivity thing. But it's worth noting that Verizon's removed the "Exclusively from Verizon" line from its little banner image, which really only means that something that wasn't actually exclusive in the first place apparently still isn't exclusive. Make sense? No? Fine. Read this again.

Galaxy Nexus hits Europe Nov. 17, elsewhere thereafter

We're at Samsung's World Tour event in London, and word just got passed that the Galaxy Nexus will be available on Nov. 17, and acrosst the globe shortly thereafter. It's unclear if that means the U.S. as well, with Verizon's "exclusive" and all. Stay tuned.

C Spire's Motorola Milestone X gets its Android 2.3 update, too

If you're making use of a Motorola Milestone X on CSpire we have some good news for you all. Yesterday, the carrier started to roll out an Android 2.3 Gingerbread update to the device which has been long awaited. Most users should get an update notification but if not just go to: Home>Menu> Settings>About Phone>System Updates

After that, you should find the update available for download and installation. Once updated, you'll find all the normal Android 2.3 goodies as well, a newer version of Blur.

Motorola Droid 4 surfaces ... wait, already?

It seems like just yesterday the Motorola Droid 3 was released, and now we already are seeing the Motorola Droid 4? Yikes -- released just three months ago, the Motorola Droid 3 brought a larger screen and better keyboard but was lacking LTE out. Looks like that will change with the Droid 4. In addition to the picture the folks at Droid-Life were able to get some specs on the device, and they are as follows:

4-inch screen (assuming Super AMOLED Advanced)

Full 5-row illuminated keyboard

RAZR styling

4G LTE

Non-removable battery

Android 2.3.5

1080p video recording (assuming 8MP)

Front camera

HDMI out

MotoACTV syncing

Non-removable battery, eh? Basically, think Droid RAZR with a keyboard. No word on release date, but it wouldn't surprise us in the least to see Verizon slip this one into its lineup sooner rather than later, especially since it apparently is lurking around a store or two.

HTC Raider shipping now and in store tomorrow at Rogers for $149 with 3-year commitment

The HTC Raider can now say goodbye to the rumored tag, and hello to the official device list as Rogers has announced that the device will begin shipping today online, and be available in stores tomorrow. This 4.5-inch qHD super LCD device will run Android 2.3.4 accompanied by an 8MP camera, 1080P video recording and all the other usual Sense goodies. If you have been waiting for an HTC device that can run on Rogers LTE, the HTC Raider may be the right device for you at the price point of only $149 if you sign a three-year deal.

C Spire's Samsung Galaxy S gets its Gingerbread update

If you've got a Samsung Galaxy S on C Spire (nee Cellular South), word is you've got an Android 2.3 update waiting for you via the Kies desktop program. Along with the Gingerbread UI and other usual changes, C Spire's also touting:

Improved battery performance

Improved IMAP/POP3 e-mail performance

Improved account and contact sync performance (like Facebook)

MMS size increased from 512KB to 1MB

Shame you still have to use Kies to update, but, hey, a Gingerbread update is a Gingerbread update, right?

Ericsson confirmed the buyout this morning and will receive a payday of €1.05 billion in return for its half of the partnership. The deal also sees sony receive an IP cross-licensing agreement as well as "five essential patent families."

Why, you ask?

The transaction gives Sony an opportunity to rapidly integrate smartphones into its broad array of network-connected consumer electronics devices – including tablets, televisions and personal computers - for the benefit of consumers and the growth of its business. The transaction also provides Sony with a broad intellectual property (IP) cross-licensing agreement covering all products and services of Sony as well as ownership of five essential patent families relating to wireless handset technology.

Verizon says 'exclusively' for the Galaxy Nexus ... But it's not exactly true

So right about now everybody's freaking out over what so many feared -- and what many of us have been saying for quite a while. There's a distinct possibility that Verizon will have some sort of exclusivity on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus.

First off, it ain't entirely true. There are caveats involved here, folks. But you knew that, because you're smart and you listen to the Greatest Android Pocast in the World and have heard us say this numerous times now and don't freak out when the rest of the world does. Let's break down what a Verizon-exclusive Galaxy Nexus means, in handy list form.

It's widely believed that Google Music was supposed to launch with such a service, but content deals couldn't be made and those plans were scrapped -- leaving a free storage locker for 20,000 of your own songs you can stream anywhere. The addition of an Amazon-esque music store, tied directly to your existing Google checkout account, sounds like a winner to us. Keep it DRM free, allow me to easily download purchased content to my phone or computer, and you have a customer for life, Google.

Verizon's Galaxy Nexus sign-up page is live

In case the suspense isn't already killing you, Verizon Wireless has launched its sign-up page for the SamsungGalaxy Nexus, a sure sign that Android's next poster child is oh-so-close. In exchange for your email address, Verizon promises to keep you up-to-speed on Galaxy Nexus information and offers you one of the first spots in line for the device. Hit the source link to sign up and remember: deep breaths, people. It's coming.

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